


Arete

by silicon_jayce



Category: Shingeki no Kyojin | Attack on Titan
Genre: Dreaming, M/M, Mountaineering, Not Really Character Death, Photography, Slow Build, Snow
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2015-04-10
Updated: 2015-04-10
Packaged: 2018-03-22 04:21:49
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,019
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/3714850
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/silicon_jayce/pseuds/silicon_jayce
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>A fic about mountain climbing because that's a lot of goodness right there. Eren and Levi mountain climb, Eren has weird dreams. That's the whole story. Jk, there's a bit more to it than that. I'm really proud of this fic so I hope you enjoy it too. I apologize I'm really bad at summaries haha. Slow build, Eren is unconscious for half the story I'm pretty sure.</p>
            </blockquote>





	Arete

_“Eren…Eren…”_

What?

_“Eren.”_

I already answered, what do you want?

_“Eren! Come on, g…up!”_

But why? It’s comfortable like this, a warm and bright place.

_“Don’t do this…. Eren, you’re Humanity’s Hope…and mi…as well.”_

Huh? I didn’t catch all that. Can you repeat it? _“_

_Didn’t you m… your goal to destroy all titans…..? We’re so… I need you to wake up!”_

Huh? Oh right, titans. I need to destroy them all. I won’t rest until I destroy them all…but…I can’t seem to get my body to move.

“Eren.”

“Mmmh, what?” I grumbled. I felt the cold air biting at my exposed face.

“Get up, it’s 6am, the sun is out, let’s get moving.”

“Okay.” I grumbled as I sat up from my sleeping bag, shivering as the thick fabric slid down, exposing my upper body. Even with a winter jacket on, the cold seemed to seep through the fibres.

“I had a dream, Levi.”

“Did you now? What was it about?”

“I don’t remember. It was blurry, but it was warm, and, someone was calling my name.”

“That’s not an exciting dream.”

“I know, but it gave me a lonely feeling.”

“Hng.” Levi grunted. “That’s not surprising, we are quite isolated right now.”

“Haha, but I never really feel lonely since you’re always here.”

“…Shut up and get your equipment together, brat.” He dismissed me with a wave of his hand, and unzipped the tent and stepped outside.

“Okay, okay.” I mumbled and wiggled out of my sleeping bag and breathed in the air, fresh. I began packing up my backpack when I heard the tent zipper again.

“It’s a nice day today, not many clouds, make sure to wear your eye shades though.” Levi said to me, his shades sitting over his forehead.

“I got it Levi, I don’t need your babying.” I stood up, backpack hooked onto one elbow.

“That’s what you think.” He smirked and went outside again, jerk. I followed him outside and took in the view. We had only been climbing for a few days and already the bottom seemed so far away. The sky was still tinted pink from the recent sunrise, and the snow sparkled as the minuscule crystals reflected the light. I looked up the mountain, we still had a long ways to go. This was my first time climbing such a tall and treacherous mountain, and it was Levi’s third. Needless to say, he’s already a seasoned alpinist, and that’s why I put up with all his nagging. I usually hate being told what to do, but up here, his words could save my life. According to him, this mountain would take about three weeks to climb up, and a bit less time to come down. We decided we would be snowboarding part of the way.

“Let’s get this tent taken down, and we can get on our way. Are you well rested enough?” Levi asked me.

I closed my eyes, feeling the conditions of my body, and opened them. “Never better.”

“If you’re sure, acting tough is only gonna drag you down on this trip.”

“Yes, I’m sure Levi. Again, stop babying me so much.”

“Then stop whining, go put on your crampons.”

I huffed indignantly. “Levi, I’m a boy.”

“Crampon, Eren, not tampon. Your tuque is too thick. Not to mention, I have infinitely better ways to insult you than calling you a girl, I don’t even see that as a valid insult.”

“Oh, sorry.” I said, slightly embarrassed and not too sure how to respond, I was impressed he made the leap to what I was thinking. We took down the tent, divided the equipment between the two of us, and headed up the mountain.

Not much conversation occurs while we're climbing. As much of an athlete the two of us are, trudging uphill through deep soft snow sucks the stamina out of you. This, combined with the wind chill, low oxygen levels, and lack of outside communication, it is easy to see how mountaineering is one of the most dangerous activities you can do. Yet, I chose this life, and so did Levi. We met at an outdoors shop a couple of times, and he came up to me this one time after he realized I, quote unquote: "have the same flame in your eyes as I do, a thirst for exhilaration". At least, that’s what he told me when I asked why he approached me. Personally, I think he’s just being a sap.

“There’s a vertical climb just up a head, only a few meters high though, we can take a break at the ledge.” Levi shouted to me, voiced muffled by his scarf. I gave him a thumbs up, knowing that would deliver my message more efficiently than my voice. We always had a rope attached to each other, a life line in the hands of the other. It was sort of romantic in a way, ignoring the fact that it may either save us both, or kill us both. It only took a few minutes to get up to the ledge, the jagged rock made nice footholds that made it easier to climb. We sat down, and took off our mufflers and goggles to take in the view. Parts of Levi’s face had turned red, filling the areas exposed to the cold winds. I didn’t doubt that my face was marked with similar patterns. It wasn’t every day we got to take off the goggles. Some days, the winds and snow were so strong that we wouldn’t be able to see a thing without them, not that they aided much with visibility. But for today, we could sit back and relax, taking in the view unhindered by the shaded film.

I suddenly felt another wave of loneliness hit me. “Levi?”

“Hmmm?” He hummed in acknowledgement.

“How high up are we?”

“About 2000 feet.”

“So, even birds do not come this far.”

“That’s true. We get this view all to ourselves.”

“Thinking about it that way… it’s still a bit lonely.”

“Are you thinking about your dream again?”

“A little bit. When I was younger, seeing birds made me want to go on a journey, they could see the world in a whole different way. But now that we’re up here, I can’t help but think how limiting it is, being a bird.”

“In what way?”

“Even if you can fly, and have freedom in the air, you’re still limited by the sky, there’s only so far you can go before you have to land again. Then you can only look up at the sky, a place you can never reach. And that somehow makes me feel lonely.”

“But we have rockets, and airplanes, does that not count?”

“I suppose they do, but we will never be able to feel the air, just by ourselves. That is something we’ll never have.” I looked up wistfully.

“But Eren, getting close to it is where all the fun is, isn’t it?” Levi turned to look at me as he said this. “Even if we can’t reach the sky now, it doesn’t mean we never will. There are people out there who will find a way, and that’s how humanity has always been.”

I brought my legs to my chest and leaned my left ear onto them. “I suppose that’s true.” A small smile came to my lips. I enjoyed talking to Levi, he always respected my fantasy thoughts, and he even indulged them, took them to heart, didn’t see them as just some child talk like other people took my words as.

“How is this related to your dream, Eren?”.

“I don’t know, it somehow gave me the feeling of being unable to fly.”

* * *

 

We trudged through the snow for another few hours before the sunlight began dimming. We found a snow rift about four meters tall, so we dug out an ice cave. They were a lot more practical than a tent, since the walls didn’t flap loudly with the wind, and it insulated the heat more efficiently. I fell asleep listening to the violent, rash wind outside and Levi’s firm, steady breathing.

_“Hang on, Eren. I’m g…ou to a shelter.”_

There’s something warm in front of me.

_“Don’t fall off… back okay? I’m going to use …euver gear now.”_

I was on someone’s back? That explained the warmth. I felt the wind blow through my hair, my arms seemed to be wrapped around something, their neck perhaps? My wrists were tied together, I couldn’t move them, yet I felt safe.

_“Dammit, there're three t…coming this way. Eren, it’s gonna get a bit rough, but bear with it okay?”_

Why do they keep talking to me when I’m not answering? What’s coming? I felt a lot of movement and jerking. So much shaking. It’s getting uncomfortable. Oh gosh, please, just stop the shaking.

“Stop!” I yelled out. The shaking stopped. I opened my eyes, and saw the dark silhouette of Levi in his snowsuit, looking down at me.

“Sorry, it sounded like you were having a nightmare. You were keeping me awake, so I tried to wake you up.”

“Well, you succeeded.” I took off my glove and ran my hand over my face, feeling the cold sweat dripping down. “What time is it?”

“Around three in the morning.” His deep, calm voice cut through the dark. “Try to go back to sleep, you’ll need it.”

“And what about you?” “I’m going to sit outside for a bit, maybe take some photos, it’s cleared up now.”

“Can I come with you?” “…I suppose it won’t hurt. Okay, come on, let’s go.”

I eagerly put on my gloves and boots and followed him outside the cave. I saw Levi standing a few meters to the left of the entrance, looking up at the sky, I followed his gaze. My breath didn’t fail to be taken away time after time again, the view was wonderful. Up in the mountains, there was little to none light pollution from the city. The stars were sparkling with all their might, and Levi and I were here to witness their vastness and beauty.

“You don’t get a view like this every day.” Levi said a few moments after a walking away from his camera. “I’m gonna see if I can capture a nice star trail.”

“I would like to see that.” I notice that I feel more peaceful when I’m up in the snowy wastelands, I feel less brash, less impulsive, less anxious.

“And see it you will, when we make it to the bottom, though that will still be a ways away.”I like the confidence in his voice. He kneels down slowly, until he is sitting with his elbows propped on his knees, and patted his lower back. It reminds me of an old grandpa trying to sit and tell stories to his grandchildren, I laugh a bit to myself. I join him, and we both look up at the sky, wondering how it can look the same every night, but never become any less interesting. A shooting star passes by.

“Is there anything you wish for, Levi?”

“I don’t think about immature things like wishing stars.”

I pouted slightly, he noticed. “But Levi, if you could actually have a wish come true just by seeing a shooting star, what would you like?”

“…for you to wake up, more easily.” I smacked him on the shoulder.

“I don’t take that much effort to wake up.” He had a melancholic expression, but I may have imagined it because he laughed, a rare sight. I couldn’t keep a serious face when he looked like that, so I laughed with him. Our delight echoed off the cliffs, and into the night. I vaguely wondered if the echo would be enough to carry our laughter to someone’s unsuspecting ears.

“How wonderful it would be,” I thought. “To stay in this moment”.

The next morning I only woke up – to my dismay – after the fifth time Levi called my name, “a huge hassle”, in his words.

**Author's Note:**

> How'd you like that? I've got the second chapter written already, this will be a three chapter fic. Hope you enjoyed! Comments greatly appreciated! my tumblr: jayce-y.tumblr.com


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